At Harrowden we are pleased that the debate concerning plastic in the sector is gaining traction. The green agenda has never been more important and as the UK’s largest amenity turf, wildflower turf and sedum mat grower, we are happy to engage in that debate.
The recent press articles possibly over-simplify the range of applications for amenity grass turf, more specialist wildflower turf or sedum mat products and the associated product design requirements. There is a risk that the story over plays the scale of use of plastic especially in the amenity turf sector which accounts for the vast majority of turf production by volume.
There are perhaps ten major amenity turf growers in the UK and whilst we cannot speak for others Harrowden’s amenity lawn turf is 100% plastic free. We are lucky to enjoy the benefits of some of the best soils in the UK and employ industry leading processes to produces strong and stable premium lawn turf in an appropriate timeframe without the use of artificial support. Further we see no real rationale for the use of plastics in producing amenity lawn turf.
For wildflower turf or sedum mat products there are a broad range of applications including general landscaping, bank erosion control, SuDS, and green roof applications. We have adopted coir blanket as a base backing material, but this is not suitable for all applications. Our Enviromat sedum blanket does contain some plastic components to provide the structural integrity require for pitched roof application for over a 20 plus year expected lifespan.
At Harrowden we continually engage in R&D and product innovation, and we have an aspiration to reduce plastic use to the bare minimum and to only use it where it is the most appropriate component for a specific application.
We would urge and encourage all customers to understand the differences between products on the market and the intended application, so they are able to make an informed decision of the best product for their specific requirements.
In 2022, Harrowden achieved ISO 9001, 14001 and 45001 accreditations with ISO 14001 specifically relating to our environmental management system where we seek to minimise our environmental impact, use resources more efficiently and to continually improve environmental performance. This is embedded in our ethos.
